Biblical Soul Care

Biblical Soul Care (BSC) is the counselling ministry of Harvest Windsor

What is Biblical Soul Care?

We would most simply define Biblical Soul Care (BSC) as speaking the truth in love in your circle of influence. It is unique to the local church as it is anchored in the Word of God, dependent on the Spirit of God, and practiced in the community of believers. We believe that the contents of Scripture speak with authoritative relevance to the content of counseling conversations; therefore, we hold that the Bible sufficiently informs the structure and content of counseling relationships.

It’s More Than a Model of Biblical Counselling

Biblical Soul Care is more than a model of biblical counselling. It is intentional and intensive discipleship and deep, authentic fellowship. It is something we all should do at the level we are equipped. It is not a new idea. It is living out the one another commands in the Scriptures. It has been practiced since the early church (Acts 2). It can be found in the Puritan community of the 16th and 17th century. It is our mission to restore soul care to the church.

Context: In Community

While all good biblical counselling content is the same (it is based on the authority and sufficiency of the Bible), how and where counselling happens differs. We believe the context is more about community than privacy. While we hold strongly to confidentiality and discretion, we believe in counselling in community. That can look like inviting friends into formal counselling, or doing informal counselling in a small group format.

In other words, Biblical Soul Care is not just for pastors or biblical counsellors but it is the privilege and responsibility of every believer. It can take many forms like mentoring, coaching, and advocacy.

Core Values:

• Christ-Centred (Colossians 1:15-20) – The person of Christ, his preeminance, the gift of his life given to us
• Biblically Grounded with Truth & Grace (John 1:14) – We get principles for life and godliness from the Bible and we want to give counsel that is a blend of both truth and grace.
• Spirit-led (John 6:63) – The real counsellor is God who meets us through his Spirit. We want to be careful to give heed to his guidance and not simply let our experience dominate the direction for our counsel.
• Prayer Saturated (Colossians 4:2) – Humility and dependence on God are shown most clearly through prayer. We want to practice and model both humility and dependence throughout the counselling process.
• Community Based (Hebrews 10:24-25) – God calls us to live life in the context of his people. Care, encouragement, exhortation, and healing happen most fruitfully in the church community

Who is eligible to receive counselling?

• Any individual or couple who are already regular attenders or Ministry Partners of Harvest Bible Church and are also faithfully attending a small group are eligible to receive counselling.

What can you expect from us?

• We are not licensed counsellors, therapists, psychiatrists or psychologists.
• We are trained, biblical counsellors.
• Our counsel is based solely on God’s Word, which is sufficient to handle any issue of life.

What do we expect from you to be in counselling?

• Be in a small group
• Attend weekend services weekly
• Have an Advocate (someone from your small group who will come with you to counselling to hold you accountable). Why do we require an Advocate? Biblical counselling always involves two steps: Step 1: listening and assessing and then giving sound, biblical direction & advice and Step 2: follow-up/accountability to encourage you to act upon the direction & advice you have received. Without Step #2, your counselling experience will be ineffective. In order to offer counsel to as many people as possible, our trained counsellors only do Step 1 and delegate Step 2 to your Advocate. Advocates do not need to be trained to offer Step 1 but commit to walk with you as you agree to act upon the direction & advice that you have received (Step 2). While some people may choose to attend counselling with no intention of experiencing life-change, those that truly desire a life-transforming experience will bring an Advocate with them! If you are new to our church and unable to find an Advocate, we will do our best to find one for you.
• Complete weekly homework

How Do I Get Help (for those already in a small group)?

1. Share your concerns, problems, pain, etc. with your Small Group leader(s).
   Your leader(s) may be able to give you the counsel you need to see healing, change, and victory.
2. If your small group leader feels they need help in caring for you, with your permission, they will refer you to formal Biblical Soul Care counselling. At that time you can fill out the forms below as your next steps.
3. Anyone who is currently attending Harvest Windsor but is not in a small group yet, can read more about small groups and fill out the small group application form here.

We understand that it may be difficult for you to take the first step. However, we believe that this first step can be a step toward healing, reconciliation, and peace. So take courage and make the step.

Option 1 – You can fill out the form online

Option 2 – You can print off the form, fill it out and hand it in

Option 3 – You can download the fillable PDF to your computer, fill it out, re-save it and then email it to soulcare@harvestwindsor.ca